The Extreme History Project: The Dirt on the Past

In this powerful episode of The Dirt on the Past, Nancy and Crystal sit down with Ian Campbell Wilson, author of Catastrophe at Custer Creek: Montana’s Deadliest Train Wreck, and Bruce Brown, the talented producer and narrator of the audiobook edition. We dive into the harrowing story behind the 1938 Custer Creek disaster—the worst rail accident in Montana history—and explore what it was like to r...

In this episode of The Dirt on the Past, hosts Nancy and Crystal take listeners deep into the heart of downtown Bozeman, MT for a look into the recent archaeological excavations in Bozeman's historic red-light district. They have a fascinating conversation about the excavations and show two artifacts that were recovered. This excavation took place in October of 2025 with a Montana State University...

In this episode of The Dirt on the Past podcast, we sit down with archaeologist and author Doug MacDonald to discuss his fascinating new book, Land of Beginnings: The Archaeology of Montana’s First Peoples. Doug takes us on a journey through Montana’s deep past, discussing where the first Montanans came from, migration routes, the Lindsey Mammoth site, the Anzick site, DNA research, and so much mo...

In this episode we are joined by renowned archaeologist Ian Hodder to delve into his extensive work at Çatalhöyük, a 9,000-year-old Neolithic site in Turkey. We explore the burial practices that shed light on social hierarchies, the role of food in shaping community identity, and how the unique architectural layout of Çatalhöyük reflects its complex social structure. Ian Hodder discusses the symbo...

We sat down with Anthony Wood to talk about his research focus on Black history in the west. We talk about his new research along with his book, Black Montana: Settler Colonialism and the Erosion of the Racial Frontier, 1877–1930. We dive into storytelling, history-making, and the stories that we tell about ourselves and what those stories and historical narratives can tell us about the past. Anth...

Join us as we speak with author Sally Thompson about her new book, Disturbing the Sleeping Buffalo: 23 Unexpected Stories That Awaken Montana's Past.  The past still lingers along old trails, and among the people who live here today. Some, such as anthropologist and storyteller Sally Thompson, are better equipped to notice the traces of history lurking in place names and written in cairns, carved...

Join Nancy and Crystal as they discuss the history of pockets! We delve deep into the fascinating history of pockets, exploring how these seemingly mundane accessories have shaped human lives and society over centuries. Drawing insights from Hannah Carlson's "Pockets: An Intimate History of How We Keep Things Close" and Barbara Burman and Ariane Fennetaux's "The Pocket: A Hidden History of Women's...

April is Archaeology Month in Montana! In honor of this, join Nancy and Crystal as they discuss a significant archaeological site located in southwest Montana called the Barton Gulch site. The oldest occupation of the Barton Gulch site is dated to 9400 BP.  Nancy and Crystal discuss the remains of earth ovens found at Barton Gulch, and talk about the possibly uses for these ovens and the plant rem...

Join us as we talk with Museum of the Rockies (MOR) Curator, Michael Fox, about historic photographs and cameras in the MOR collection. We look at two historic cameras dating to the late 19th century and 1930s time period. We then dive into a series of historic photographs that capture the historic west through photographic imagery. Historic photographs are an important way for historians and arch...

Join us as we talk with Mark Sullivan, a #1 New York Times bestselling author who wrote The Last Green Valley about a family, the Martels, that flee the Ukraine in 1944 to arrive and eventually settle in Bozeman, MT. We discuss the families harrowing journey as they, along with thousands of others make the Long Trek. Join us for this important conversation with Mark Sullivan. Mark Sullivan is the...

Join us as we talk with Museum Educator Ashley Hall about her career as a museum educator at the Museum of the Rockies, her research on Sauropod feet and her books including Fossils for Kids: A Junior Scientist’s Guide to Dinosaur Bones and Ancient Animals, and Prehistoric Life on Earth and Prehistoric Worlds: Stomp Into the Epic Lands Ruled by Dinosaurs (due out at the end of March 2024).   Ashle...

We talked with Historian Sarah Keyes about her new book, "American Burial Ground: A New History of the Overland Trail." We delve into the history of the Overland Trail, discussing the 6,600 migrants who perished along the treacherous journey westward, their final resting places often marking the landscape of Indigenous land. Keyes' explains how the graves of these migrants emerge not just as tragi...

Join us as we talk with the author of True West: Myth and Mending on the Far Side of America, Betsy Gaines Quammen. We discuss her book and what she learned about America as she spent time in small towns and big cities throughout the West, talking with people about their beliefs on land, politics, liberty, and self-determination. Betsy tells us about some of her conversations, and what she learned...

Join us as we discuss the Hagen Site, a National Historic Landmark located on a bluff above the Yellowstone River north of Glendive, Montana. This archaeological site is significant because it documents the establishment of a permanent village by a people in transition from the Eastern Woodlands to a Plains bison culture. We dive into the Museum of the Rockies collections to view artifacts from th...

Join us as we talk with Michael Fox, the curator of history at the Museum of the Rockies in Bozeman, MT about John Bozeman. Bozeman is the namesake for the town of Bozeman, Montana and instrumental in creating the Bozeman Trail, an overland route in the Western United States, connecting the gold rush territory of southern Montana to the Oregon Trail in eastern Wyoming from roughly 1863 to 1868. Cr...

Join us for a discussion on historic red-light districts in Butte and Bozeman, MT with guest Chelsea Hogan. Chelsea is the Museum of the Rockies Director of Education and Programming and she is the co-producer of the Museum's Haunted Mountain Theatre. We discuss how Haunted Mountain Theatre is incorporating a story about a Butte Madam into their show this year. We also discuss historic red-light d...

Join us this week as we talk with Kerri Maher about her new novel, All You Have to do is Call. This story honors the heroines of the Jane collective, a group of women who provided safe, clandestine health services in the pre-Roe v. Wade era. We discuss the book, but also dive into the history of this time and the real women of the Jane Collective in the early 1970s. Kerri Maher is the USA Today be...

Join us for our conversation with historic preservation architect, Lesley Gilmore on the National Register of Historic Places process. We discuss what it takes to nominate a property for listing, the rigorous evaluation process, and the immense value that this recognition brings. We also highlight some misconceptions of the National Register process and listings. Have a listen and we hope this epi...

Join us as we talk with Pete Brown about all things Montana SHPO! Pete Brown has been Montana’s State Historic Preservation Officer (SHPO) since 2019. His work at the State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) began in 2002 when he served as the Historic Architecture Specialist. We talk with Pete about his job as SHPO and what that entails on a daily basis. We also talk more broadly about the Natio...

Join us as we discuss women who followed medieval mercenary armies with Dr. Danielle Mead Skjelver. During the late medieval period, it was not uncommon for women to travel with mercenary armies, either as wives or as camp followers. These women often provided essential support services to the soldiers, such as cooking, cleaning, and nursing. Some women also took on more active roles, such as sell...

Join Nancy and Crystal as they discuss the most recent Montana Archaeological Society Annual Meeting, highlighting presentations and awards. The Montana Archaeological Society (MAS) is a non-profit organization dedicated to the preservation, study, and understanding of Montana's rich archaeological heritage. The society was founded in 1958 and is made up of individuals from a wide range of backgro...

Join us as we talk with Tim Urbaniak about his new book, Men of the Cave: The Excavation of Empty Gulch. We discuss the 1937 archaeological excavation of Empty Gulch, now known as Pictograph Cave State Park. This project was financed by the Works Progress Administration (WPA) and employed a group of men, and one woman, to excavate this significant archaeological site. We discuss the key players in...

Join us as we have a wide-ranging conversation about the history of red-light districts, including the Los Angeles Red-Light District during the 1920's and 1930's. AnneMarie Kooistra is a historian who has conducted extensive research on the history of prostitution in Los Angeles during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Her research has focused on the red-light district of the cit...

Join Crystal and Nancy, co-hosts of The Dirt on the Past podcast, for a history minute where they discuss how Bronze Age women had stronger arms than today's elite female rowers, due to grinding grain for hours a day. "This is the first study to actually compare prehistoric female bones to those of living women," said lead researcher, Dr Alison Macintosh. 

Join us as we talk with Amanda Hendrix-Komoto about her new book, Imperial Zions: Religion, Race, and Family in the American West and the Pacific which was published in 2022. We discuss the history of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, focusing in on the women of the historical narrative including the wife of Joseph Smith. We talk about polygamy within the church, and when the practi...